Package-carrier



UNITED STATES APATENT I Trice.

JOSEPH G. PARKINSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

PAC KAG E-CARRI ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 501,023, dated July 4, 1893.

Application filed March 7, 1893. Serial No. 464,998. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH G. PARKINsoN, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Package-Carriers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to traveling carriers for parcels, that is, to such as are composed of a basket or receptacle suspended from a moving carriage, and are attached to or detached from that carriage at one end or the other of that line. Such carriages are usually run upon wire tracks, and means have heretofore been devised for latching the basket to, or unlatching it from, the carriage, by the lifting action of hooks or other supports, as, for instance, in the Letters Patent granted to Henry M. Weaver, August l0, 1887, No. 367,874, or to Samuel W. Barr, January 24, 1893, No. 490,533, the latter of which, especially, may be referred to for the purpose of a full understanding of my invention. In

these carriers the first lifting movement of i the basket causes the latching devices carried thereby, or by the carriage-bracket, to engage with those upon the counterpart, while any subsequent lifting movement throws them into such position as to cause disengagement. Therefore, if by accident, the basket after being once-secured, is struck upward while traveling, or if the elastic nature of the line causes it to swing or jolt, it is apt to be released and dropped upon the counterA or floor, or whatever is beloW,-sometimes breaking storextures or wares beneath, or doing other injury.

The object of my invention is primarily to prevent a basket from being moved upward relatively to the position of engagement, after it has once been engaged, except by 'means of the regular lifting arms or hooks; that is to say, to form a double lock in coadjuvancy with the latching devices against descending and against rising-and secondly to prevent it from becoming detached from the carrier through imperfect connection of the latchin g devices after it has left said lifting arms or hooks, or, in other words, to form a supplemental lock against escape by a descending movement.

In the drawings: Figure l is an elevation,

partly in section, of so much of a traveler block for permanent attachment to the carriage and of a latch-block, or bail, for supporting the basket, and embodying my improvement, as is necessary to an understanding thereof. Fig. 2 is a side elevation, in section on the correspondingly numbered line in the preceding figure; Fig. 3, a detail view of an alternative form of my improvement, showing also how it is adapted to act as a supplemental lock; Fig. 4, a section on the line 4-4 of the preceding' figure; Fig. 5 an elevation, partly in section, of said alternative form, showing, in full and dotted lines, the positions of the bail and its attachments relatively to the carrier-block when the dog is engaged, and immediately before engagement; and Fig. 6, a vertical, transverse section on the correspondingly numbered line in the preceding figure, showing, in full and dotted lines, the position of the dog relatively to the positions of the parts, likewise indicated in said preceding figure.

A- represents a forked carrier-block or bracket which is intended to be swung from a car, as in the Barr patent above referred to, by means of a pivot pin passing through the ears, a. This carrier-block has depending arms, A', outwardly flaring at their lower ends with their exterior lateral faces recessed or paneled, as at a, leaving outwardly projecting ribs, a2. The space between these arms forms a vertical slot, A2, for the reception of the central web of the latch-block or basket bail which is guided thereto by their daring edges and each arm is hollowed out interiorly and has a trip-bar as, seats or rests a4, a5 and stop a6, as in said Barr patent.

B is a yoke-shaped latch-block from each side of which project upwardly, outwardly and downwardly extending bars, B the extreme ends of which receive in sockets, b, the handle-rods from the bracket and hold them by means of the screws, b', thus completing the basket-bail. The central web, B2, of the yoke or latch-block is of such thickness as to pass readily in to the slot between the arms of the carrier-bracket and is provided for the purpose of this description with the swinging dog or tumbler, b2, of the Barr patent, but it will be understood that any equivalentlatching device may be employed. On each side sov IOO

of the central web the latch-block has vertical outsetting flanges, b3, to embrace the exterior faces of the forked arms of the carrierbracket or, rather, the ribs guarding the slot between said arms. These ribs merge at their tops into outwardly curved or daring plates, B3, which guide and direct the latch-block into or between the arms of the carrier-block.

Pivoted to one or both of thelateral or bail bars of the latch-block, in the re-entrant angle where the just mentioned guide-plates take their departure from the vertical flanges, so as to bring the pivot-pin, c, as near as may be to the adjacent face of the carrier-block, are dogs or catches, C; the heel-ends arms or extensions, c', of each of which extend from the pivot outwardly and somewhat downwardly past the corresponding bail-arm or bar of the latch-block, and normally7 somewhat beneath the lower edge thereof at the curve, or that point where lifting hooks or fingers, D, would touch the bar, if not previously intercepted, while the toe-ends, d, depend from the pvot vertically, or nearly vertically, and are provided with insetting claws, d', one or more to each, which play through openings, (Z2, in the vertical `iianges of the latch-block and are urged in toward the carrierblock either by the gravity of the heel-end of the catch or by a spring, E, pressing upon the shank. At the point or points in the anges of the carrier-block opposite which the claws or teeth of the catches will be, when the latchdog or tumbler en gages with its seats, and bars the furtherdownward movement of the basket relatively to the carrier, said anges are cut away or notched, as at f, for their reception. The upper side of each notch forms a shoulder or stop, f', with which the flat upper face of the tooth or claw engages to preclude upward movement of the latch-block and basket away from the seats of the latch-dog, while the opposing side of the notch may be inclined downward and t-he end of the claw engaging with it correspondingly beveled, as at f2, so as to be readily disengaged or slide freely past the notch when the basket is being detached.

In connecting the basket to the carriage, the lifting hooks or arms first come in contact with the shanks or heel-ends of the catchdogs and lift these against the springs, if the latter are used, bringing them up flush with the under surface of the curved bail-bars thus withdrawing the claws from any possible engagement with the carrier-block, or into a position where they will not interfere with the operation of uniting the parts. The con tinued movement of the lifting hooks raises the latch-block and catch-dogs into the position indicated by dotted lines in Figs. l, 5 and 6, when the engaging dog or tumbler will have been reversed by means of its tripblock, as in the hereinbefore mentioned patent to Barr. The basket is then lowered slightly, bringing the parts into the position shown in full lines, except that the catchdogs will still be open. The latch-dog being now engaged with its seats and barring any further descent of the latch-block, the lifting hooks will be allowed to sink, the catches will thereby be released and will spring in and engage with the notches in the carrier-block, when the fastening will be completed and the latch-block will be locked positively against upward as well as downward movement, so that n0 jolting of the basket will unlatch it. When the basket reaches its terminal station, the lifting-hooks or arms at that point being operated, as usual, for the purpose of detaching it from the carrier-bracket, will first open the catches, the very resistance of the bracket facilitating this. Then,strikingthe bail-bars of the latch-block, they will lift the basket, 0r the latch-block and all it carries, until the tumbler has swung into position to be Withdrawn when the lowerin gof the basket will effect the disengagement.

Sometimes the latch-dog does not engage, but instead of releasing the basket at once, it hangs or lingers until the lifting hooks have been lowered out of touch and the carrier has started on its journey. rlhen the basket drops when least expected. To guard against this the point of the claw may be made square and the lower face of the notch into which it enters made flat or parallel with the upper face or shoulder, to afford a second and opposing shouldenf, asin Fig. 3,whicl1 will actas a stop against the fall of the basket. This shoulder may be close up against the lower face of the claw when the latter is engaged with the upper shoulder or stop, that is to say the two shoulders may form a close socket for the end of the claw, but as the catches may not be at that point when the tumbler hangs orlingcrs, I have shown the lower shoulder at some distance from the upper, as in said third figure, in order that the claws may have time to shut into the notch after the hooksleave them and before the basket pulls so far as to carry them past these supplemental stops. Thus if the tumbler gives Way, or in the falling movement after it gives way, should such release occur, it is evident that by the certain engagement of the catches or claws with these lower stops or shoulders, the basket will be prevented from leaving the carrier and will be supported to the end of its journey where the hook or lifting arms, when brought into action will release the catches at the same time that they receive the basket. 4

Instead of placing the shanks of the catchdogs on the outer side of the bail-bar of the latch-block, as in the first two figures of the drawings, they may be received into recesses, or sockets, Gr, in the bail-bars, as in the last two figures of the drawings; in such construction, as in the former, the face, g, of the latchblock will form an abutment against which the shank of the catch will strike when the claws are fully projected, so as to prevent them from being pushed in too far.

While the claws of the catch-dogs have been TOO IIO

described as passing through openings in the anges of the latch-block and entering notches in the iianges of the carrier-block, it is evident that they may pass outside of either or both flanges and that they maybe received in recesses or openings in the body of thecarrier-block without departing from the spirit of my invention;- it is evident, also, that the particular form of latching device used is immaterial, so long as lthe movements involved in engaging and disengaging thebasket remain the same.

I am aware of Letters Patentgranted to Julius Fink, March l, 1892, and numbered 469,896, in which locking pins are made to engage the latch-dog-after it has found its seats, but this construction differs from my invention in that, although said pins form a safety lock against disengagement, in case the lock-dog fails to operate, they do not prevent the basket-bail from jumpingup in the arms of the carrier-block so as to bring the latchdog into position for disengagement.

As already intimated, a singlecatch-dog, pivoted on one of the arms of the latch-block, and arranged to be operated by one of the lifting-hooks, will b e sufficient to accomplish, in a practical measure, the object of my invention, although, to insure uniformity of operation and greater security, it is deemed best to apply a catch to each of the two arms; therefore, in the ensuing claims, whenever such catch or catches are spoken of in lthe plural, it is my intention that the singular shall be included thereby; that is to say, to cover and embrace, within these claims, the employment of one or more catches, in combination with the other elements enumerated therein.

l. The combination,substantially as hereinbefore set forth, with the forked carrierblock, and with the basket-bail and its latchdog, of a safety-lock acting when the latchdog has accomplished its engagement, to prevent upward movement of the basket-bail relatively to the carrier-block.

2. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, with thevforked carrierblock, basket-bail and latch-dog, of catches mounted upon the basket-bail and engaging beneath stops upon the carrier-block when the latch rests upon its seats, and means controlled by the lifting hooks to disengage saidcatches.` v Y 3. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, with the carrier-block having shoulders, of the latch-block provided with pivoted catches having outsetting heelarms to receive the lifting hooks, arranged t0 engage beneath the shoulders upon the carrier-block when the latch has accomplishedV its own engagement, to prevent upward movement of the latch-block rela-tively to the carrier-block. Y

4. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, with the carrier-block having two sets of stops or shoulders, of the latch-block having catches provided with heel extensions to receive the lifting hooks, and with teeth which engage with the upper set of shoulders, when the latch-dog is engaged,

to form a positive lock against upward movethe springs, E, and notches or recesses in the sides of the carrier-block to receive the teeth of said catches when the latch-dog-has reachedits position of engagement. l 7. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, with the carrier-block and latch-block,of the elbow-lever catches pivoted to the latch-block, the stops, f', upon.

the carrier-block to engage above these catches to prevent upward movement of the baskety relatively to the carrier-block and the opposing stops, f3, on said carrier-block to engage beneath the catches and prevent escape of the z basket when the latch-dog fails to operate.

JOSEPH G. 'PARK'INSON Vitnesses:

CHARLES L. HINE, M. E. SHIELDs.

adapted to be opened by the lifting arm, D, 

